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What does the angel in the story, A very old man with enormous wings, written by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, symbolize? This question is very significant to the story because it will tell us the message that the author is trying to relay to the reader. One might say that the angel and his wings signify the newfound wealth of the family. Others may say that he symbolizes Jesus Christ himself. I personally believe that the angel symbolizes faith in God and the path that people take to find him.
In the beginning of the story, the first time they see the fallen angel they say, He must have been coming for the child... This shows us that peoples first impression of something that they do not know is that it is bad. They believe since they cannot explain it that is going to do something bad, such as take the sick baby away. This is how people are when they are first introduced to the idea of God and faith. When they first hear of it they are scared and fearful automatically because they cannot understand it. After we see that the people are fearful of the angel and cannot understand him we see that they cannot put an end to him though when the author tells us, ...
they did not have the heart to club him to death. This relates to faith in God because once you learn of him and are made aware he is there, you cannot forget about him no matter how little you know about him. Just like they could not kill the angel, you cannot kill the idea of God in your mind. When the author says A short time afterward the child woke up without a fever and with a desire to eat, the people of the town didnt think that the angel had anything to do with it. This is like a person faith in God because people of little belief and understanding in God only look to him when things are bad. The author tells us this when she tells of the kinds of people came to see the angel.
She uses examples like the sleepwalker and the man the stars kept awake at night. They fail to praise him or give him credit when something extraordinary happens. This stage though is normal when a person is first coming to know and understand their faith. Since they do not understand it they look for ways to test the credibility of it, which can be seen when the pariah priest goes in to check out the angel.
This to is like faith because you are always trying to find way to understand and to test the credibility of what you have been told. His only supernatural virtue seemed to be his patience. In this the author is telling the reader that with all the people coming to him and gawking staring at him he never got upset. This is true of God in our path to find faith. God knows that people stray from the path that he has set but he forgives them and welcomes them back with loving and open arms. At the end of the story the parents of the child become okay with the child playing with the angel and they will even let the child sleep with him.
This shows how people fully learn to put their faith in God and trust that he knows what is best. Just like the parents put their trust in the angel. I believe that this is the most correct interpretation of the angel because of the progress that you see in the way the people view the angel. From the beginning to the end of the story you can see a definite change in the way the people view the angel. It is made very clear by the author that at first they are cautious of him but in the end they are trusting and accepting. This is the same way that our faith in God works.
It takes time for us to fully believe and trust in God just like it took the people time to trust and believe in the angel. Bibliography:
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Research essay sample on Faith In God Idea Of God
